| 16 | So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said: "Men of Israel, and you that fear God, listen. |
| 17 | The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. |
| 18 | And for about forty years he bore with them in the wilderness. |
| 19 | And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance, for about four hundred and fifty years. |
| 20 | And after that he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. |
| 21 | Then they asked for a king; and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. |
| 22 | And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king; of whom he testified and said, `I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.' |
| 23 | Of this man's posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. |
| 24 | Before his coming John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. |
| 25 | And as John was finishing his course, he said, `What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.' |
| 26 | "Brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you that fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. |
| 27 | For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets which are read every sabbath, fulfilled these by condemning him. |
| 28 | Though they could charge him with nothing deserving death, yet they asked Pilate to have him killed. |
| 29 | And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a tomb. |
| 30 | But God raised him from the dead; |
| 31 | and for many days he appeared to those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people. |
| 32 | And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, |
| 33 | this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus; as also it is written in the second psalm, `Thou art my Son, today I have begotten thee.' |
| 34 | And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he spoke in this way, `I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.' |
| 35 | Therefore he says also in another psalm, `Thou wilt not let thy Holy One see corruption.' |
| 36 | For David, after he had served the counsel of God in his own generation, fell asleep, and was laid with his fathers, and saw corruption; |
| 37 | but he whom God raised up saw no corruption. |
| 38 | Let it be known to you therefore, brethren, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, |
| 39 | and by him every one that believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. |
| 40 | Beware, therefore, lest there come upon you what is said in the prophets: |
| 41 | `Behold, you scoffers, and wonder, and perish; for I do a deed in your days, a deed you will never believe, if one declares it to you.'" |
| 42 | As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next sabbath. |
| 43 | And when the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. |